In 1838, Fulton County was split off from Montgomery, shortly after the Montgomery county seat was moved to Fonda, New York. The creation of Fulton County was engineered by Johnstown lawyer Daniel Cady, whose wife was a cousin of Robert Fulton.[4]

Fulton County was created on April 18, 1838 by a partition of Montgomery County, resulting in a county with an area of 550 square miles (1,400 km2).[5]

One adjustment has been made to the area of Fulton County. On April 6, 1860, 10 square miles (26 km2) on the northern border was transferred to Hamilton in the vicinity of Sacandaga Park.[6] This resulted in the Fulton County that exists today.

Fulton County was also home to Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a central pioneer in the women's rights movement in America.

Shortly after the American Revolutionary War, the manufacture of gloves and leather became the primary industry of the area. At one point, Johnstown and Gloversville were known as the Glove and Leather capital of the world. The largest rise in population and growth came as a result of the fruits of these businesses.

Many residents of Fulton County can trace their ancestry back to the glove and leather trades. Today few glovers, tanners and leather dressers still exist in the area, although some companies have adapted to the changes in the market and kept themselves competitive.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 533 square miles (1,380 km2), of which 495 square miles (1,280 km2) is land and 37 square miles (96 km2) (7.0%) is water.[7] Fulton County is in the central part of the state, northwest of Albany.

There were 21,884 households out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.00% were married couples living together, 11.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.70% were non-families. 27.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.94.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.90% under the age of 18, 7.20% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 16.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.60 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,663, and the median income for a family was $39,801. Males had a median income of $29,538 versus $22,173 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,844. About 9.20% of families and 12.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.50% of those under age 18 and 7.50% of those age 65 or over.